We understand: It’s a lot of money to spend on basic productivity software. But if you don’t require all the latest features, there are ways to save a considerable amount of money on Microsoft Office. Here’s how. In this guide, we look at four ways to do just that.

Use the free web and mobile apps

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Microsoft has been gradually expanding the number of apps you can use online for free, and now offers an impressive suite that can easily merge with downloaded apps, if necessary, and has plenty of functionality for the average project.

It’s also really easy to sign up. Go to this web page, pick the app that you want (scroll down for all options), and log into your Microsoft account to get started. If you don’t have a Microsoft account, signing up is easy — plus, since you need Office Online, it’s a good idea to create one anyway. This allows you to use Word, Excel, PowerPoint, OneNote, Calendar, and other traditional Microsoft apps. It also gives you access to more niche apps, like Sway, an interactive report/presentation app; People, an advanced, Skype-friendly contact list; and Docs.com, for uploading and sharing documents.

So, if this is all here and available for free, why does the rest of this article exist? Because while these apps are useful, they’re also limited to only work for very basic functions. They don’t offer the full features that Microsoft 365 (previously known as Office 365) provides and, of course, you need an online connection to use them. It’ll work for simple tasks, like putting together a simple document — but it won’t work for more complicated ones.

Get Office apps through your school

If you are part of an education organization (student, faculty, or staff), take time to enter your school email address on this site and see if you can get a version of Office for free. Microsoft extends the Office 365 Education program to all students, but your school needs to be signed up first or just get very lucky.

If your school isn’t part of the program, an administrator can sign you up easily. The benefits are basically the same as the trial version of the software, with the addition of a separate Class Notebook for class management, unlimited online meetings, and intranet customization options.

If you just graduated, you may not be able to get Office apps for free, but you can get it at a very low cost. The alumni discount allows you to get Office 365 Personal for just $1 per month for 12 months, a great deal for those starting out in their professional environments.

Try a free 30-day trial of Microsoft 365

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Free trials are still a thing and Microsoft Office apps are no exception. If you want to experience Microsoft 365 for free, you can — for a full month. Just head to the free trial page and sign up. The trial allows you to download Microsoft 365 for up to six users and across Windows, Macs, and mobile devices. Plus, you get 1TB of OneDrive cloud storage for each user to experiment with. The trial includes the latest versions of Word, Excel, PowerPoint, Outlook, and other apps.

The downside is that you only get a month of service, which obviously isn’t beneficial if you need long-term access. Another caveat is that Microsoft requires your financial account information before the download and will start automatically charging you after the month is up, which can make disentangling yourself from Microsoft 365 a little difficult (which is the point). It’s a good way to try out the full version of Microsoft 365 to see if it offers enough to be worth the price tag but be ready to cancel if you don’t want to be charged.

Note: Some product offers can be a little tricky, like the “Try Microsoft 365 Personal for free” hook on the Microsoft Store. Be warned that this is still referring to the one-month trial version, even if it doesn’t come right out and say so. And don’t try those “free product key” websites, which tend to be pretty sketchy and rarely deliver.

Sign up for an evaluation (30 to 60 days)

Microsoft’s Evaluation Center is a program that allows you to test out certain Office apps for a period of time. The only Office Evaluation program Microsoft offers is for Office 365 ProPlus, which lasts 30 days. It’s basically another way to get a free trial, but with more specific and full-featured software.

Remember that it is an evaluation period, thoughh, so the service will stop after the set period. Also, Microsoft may use this service to help work out the kinks in newer apps, so don’t expect everything to be perfect the first time around.

Don’t forget that you can use free Microsoft Office alternatives

If you need Office-like apps and need them fast, there are a lot of free versions and alternatives out there. These apps tend to have interfaces very similar to Office apps, and their files can often be transferred over to the Office suite with little to no hassle.

That makes these solutions great in a pinch — or just when you need to save some money.